MiddletownJournal.com

Still think Terrelle Pryor’s an egomaniac?

By Kyle Nagel | Friday, August 8, 2008, 10:22 AM

No one was more frustrated last February than the reporters who clogged the Jeannette High School gymnasium hoping to find out — not for team support, but for end of media frenzy — where Terrelle Pryor would go to college.

On signing day, of course, he didn’t choose. We met in the gym for him to tell us he was hoping to make more visits. The rumor continues to be that he wanted to pick Ohio State but his father wanted him to consider Penn State a little bit more.

Radio talk shows around Pittsburgh buzzed that day with people criticizing the high school senior and nation’s No. 1 football recruit for just wanting more attention. They said he couldn’t stand to give up the spotlight. (Question: The photo above is an example of the spotlight. Would you really want to keep this as long as possible?).

Pryor talked reporters for the first time yesterday at Ohio State’s football media day. I looked to Bob Hunter of the Columbus Dispatch this morning for the rational view on Pryor’s first meeting, which proves the OSU freshman isn’t a spoiled brat:

Some answer samples:

“I’m not a celebrity.”

“Yeah, I talk to my mom and dad every day.”

Was Pryor surprised to be getting all these questions when he hasn’t played a down of college football? “Yeah,” he said softly. “I’m wondering why.”

“There’s all these other big players and I’m the one getting hounded.”

Have guys told you what the Ohio State -Michigan game is like? Pryor smiled. “I want to see what the first game is like.”

Yes, Pryor did drag out his recruitment more than most. And there was a lot of media coverage. But how would it work for you if, while making an important job decision, you were asked about it 30 times a day? Do you think you might seem like a waffler or indecisive?

We don’t just get asked about out lives that much. He does. And he’s handling it well.

Permalink | Comments (3) | Post your comment

Saine not making contact, and the Buckeyes need him

By Kyle Nagel | Thursday, August 7, 2008, 10:55 AM

This from The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer’s OSU practice report yesterday:

Running back Brandon Saine wore a yellow jersey that signifies limited practice contact and didn’t seem to work into most of the drills with the other running backs. Jim Tressel did not mention Saine when asked about injuries on Monday.

The non-mention is good news, because Ohio State needs Saine as a main weapon this season. During the spring, Tressel acknowledged that the team was moving Saine around to different assignments because coaches planned to use him in many different ways.

Not a gifted straight-ahead runner, Saine is best used out in the open. That could be on sweeps, short passes or other ways of getting him the ball in open space. He would be a gifted slot receiver.

Even though the Buckeyes are loaded everywhere, Saine is still a key component to the offense. So, it would be helpful to get that yellow jersey off him soon.

Permalink | Comments (1) | Post your comment

Alter’s Roark walks on at Ohio State

By Kyle Nagel | Wednesday, August 6, 2008, 01:46 PM

Add Alter’s Chris Roark to the list of area players walking on to Ohio State’s football team.

That list also includes Tom Ingham, a junior defensive end from Centerville who was noted several times last season in coach Jim Tressel’s weekly news conference for his work on the scout team.

Roark is listed as a wide receiver, but he was primarily a running back at Alter, part of the powerful backfield that, at one point, contained Michael Shaw. He’s not on the roaster posted at the Ohio State athletics website, but he is on the roster posted on Tressel’s site.

As far as the treatment of walk-ons, Ryan Lukens praises Tressel:

“With coach Tressel, if you are on the team you are on the team,” Ryan Lukens said. “He knows everyone, whether you are a walk-on or a starter. I remember that first year being amazed that he knew every kid, their hometown, their high school, their high school coach, everything. He’s just amazing with that stuff.”

And what can Roark do to get himself noticed by the coaches? This advice from former successful walk-on Drew Norman:

I’d say probably my work ethic. You hear all the time about the guy who wears his hard hat and just brings his lunch pail to work every day. I’d like to think I was that way. I always spent extra time in the weight room and I always did well on the conditioning test. If they ever needed volunteers for anything, I was willing to help.

Permalink | Comments (0) | Post your comment

The OSU arrest list is, indeed, imposing

By Kyle Nagel | Tuesday, August 5, 2008, 04:00 PM

Passion can drive people to very committed research.

Case in point, the blog Michigan Against the World. These three fellas spent some time looking up how many Ohio State football players have been arrested since Jim Tressel became coach.

The result is an extended entry that explains Doug Worthington’s was the 30th arrest in that time.

Ohio State fans would tell you to consider the source, but each arrest is explained, from cornerback Derek Ross on March 21, 2001, to Worthington on July 26.

Granted, we have no matching list for Michigan’s program for comparison, but I imagine these guys, if we asked about that, would joke that Ohio State fans don’t have the motivation to compile such a list.

So, for now, we have one for the Buckeyes.

Permalink | Comments (11) | Post your comment

Jake Ballard is shrinking

By Kyle Nagel | Wednesday, July 30, 2008, 08:00 AM

This is Jake Ballard last season. Then, this is Jake Ballard today.

Same photo. Same team description.

The difference? He’s 1 inch shorter.

For some reason, the tight end from Springboro was listed at 6 feet 7 last season and is now 6-6 on the Ohio State roster. Maybe the seasons sitting below Rory Nicol on the depth chart have taken a physical toll, as well.

Regardless of his height, Ballard is a respected guy in the Buckeyes plans this season as the tight end position is described as undervalued.

So says ESPN.com:

Two experienced tight ends return — fifth-year senior Rory Nicol (6-5, 252) had 16 catches last season, and junior Jake Ballard (6-6, 256), who is emerging as a solid red zone target.

And Foxsports.com:

There’s plenty of experience returning with promising backups who got their feet wet last year, and two excellent tight ends in Rory Nicol and Jake Ballard an unappreciated twosome who should be used more in the passing game.

He’s good. Just shorter.

Permalink | Comments (2) | Post your comment

Who, exactly, is the backup quarterback?

By Kyle Nagel | Tuesday, July 29, 2008, 08:05 AM

Jim Tressel doesn’t have a lot of options when looking for quarterbacks on his roster. There’s Todd Boeckman, the fifth-year senior from St. Henry and returning starter, then “freshman” Joe Bauserman,” then freshman Terrelle Pryor.

The Ohio State media guide lists Bauserman as Boeckman’s backup, but the slightly different depth chart of Tressel’s personal website doesn’t have a backup at quarterback.

On coachtressel.com, it’s Boeckman all by his lonesome.

This is no conspiracy, of course, perhaps an oversight by the webmaster. There are other differences, too. In the media guide, for instance, Chimdi Chekwa is listed as the starter at cornerback ahead of incumbent (and off-field problem-carrying) Donald Washington. On Tressel’s site, Rob Rose is listed as the third man at defensive tackle, while he’s not featured in the media guide list due to injury.

But if you have Pryor, don’t you want to keep people guessing as long as possible where he stands in your plans? If he finds his way to the backup slot, then it’s assumed he’ll play from the first game. Some think the Buckeyes shouldn’t put him on the field until the third game against USC.

In Ohio, the Ohio State depth chart is as scrutinized than any piece of state legislation. These differences are major topics, so we just have to wonder which one is correct.

Permalink | Comments (1) | Post your comment

Doug Worthington another legal problem

By Kyle Nagel | Monday, July 28, 2008, 02:51 PM

So, let’s say you’re an Ohio State football player. And you’ve been drinking. Seems obvious you shouldn’t drive, right?

But even if you are driving, the last place you want to be is right outside Ohio Stadium.

Ohio State defensive tackle Doug Worthington might have put his starting status in jeopardy after being arrested last weekend on a drunken-driving charge.

Worthington, 20, was arrested by Ohio State police at 3:13 a.m. Saturday, records show, near the intersection of Woody Hayes Drive and Cannon Drive — right in front of Ohio Stadium.

Maybe it was right out of the scene from Dazed and Confused in which the football players along with friends and girls lie on the 50-yard line at the high school stadium smoking dope and laughing. Perhaps Worthington was just on his way out from a similar get-together.

Whatever happened, it’s not good news for the Buckeyes. Worthington’s arrest comes less than a month after mostly special-teamer Eugene Clifford was charged with throwing punches at a Cincinnati night spot.

The Buckeyes were celebrated for their number of returning starters, but they might have lost one in the shadow of their own stadium.

Permalink | Comments (0) | Post your comment